My Burial

by Douglas Baynes

As I walked up the stairs, my climb was slow and I held on to the banister. The carpet under my feet was wet from others that had gone before me. As I reached the top of the stairs, I was met with a warm smile from an old friend—he came to my burial. My time had come, and I was beckoned down. When my feet touched the water, it was cold— cold and icy as the grave itself. Each step I took was deliberate and forceful as the frigate water slowly rose to envelop my

body. When I reached the bottom, the pastor smiled at me. He asked my name and harking back to old days in the military, I answered with a voice loud and deliberate. He then asked, “If you were to die today, would heaven be your home?”

“Oh yes!” I replied. With that, he spoke softly as if he was my father, “I have you.” I was calm, and I was in his care. I heard him say, “in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I baptize you, my brother.”

Then laying me back into the water, the coldness of it now blanketed my whole being. Death, as it was, had finally come to this soul. I knew in my spirit what it was to die with Christ. I was separated from the very air I needed, the warmth, and from friends and loved ones.

Then a strong arm grasped about my back, I was lifted, as from that grave, and as the water flowed from me, my joy of being raised anew with Christ was complete. I raised my arms and shouted to the Lord! The watery grave was now replaced 12 // April 2022

with the warmth of fresh air and the newness of life. I had, after all these years, finally followed in my Lord’s footsteps. I gave my heart and my life to Christ on April 30, 1961, and a few years later, all the boys at my church got together, let’s all get baptized. At twelve years old, none of us really understood the meaning of it. It was just another “get to heaven” thing you had to do.

In the last few months, I felt compelled to be baptized again, as I now know the meaning of it and the eternal significance of it. Water baptism is the act of obedience to

His command, as all those behind me from centuries past had done. I now have been made a new creature in, and with, Christ. The steps from that watery pool were now complete, and in that water, stripped from me was that old man, but I have been raised anew in Christ. If the Lord tarries too long in His return and my days here are completed, my pastor will once again stand at my burial site. He will be across from a flag-draped casket. But know this—as he raised me from that water on March 6, 2022, Jesus will take my hand and raise me to be with Him on that last day here. Forever I shall be with

Him and all those that have followed Christ. Paul wrote to the Romans in 6:4: “Therefore we were buried with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so, we also should walk in newness of life.”

You can ask the Lord to forgive you of your sins and to make Him the Lord of your life in private, but water baptism is the public confession of your faith and trust in Him. In Matthew 28:19, the Lord’s great commission to the church was “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

In closing, I have to say that at seventy, I felt, well, silly doing this until I saw my friend in front of me—and he has six years on me. No matter your age the time is short, for Jesus is coming soon. Cross all the “T’s” and dot all the “I’s.” Make everything right between you and the Lord.

About The Author Doug Baynes attends PRC with his wife Annie of forty-two years. They host “Caffeine Connection” every Sunday morning. Come and have a cup!